The Hogwarts Express rattled steadily along the tracks, red steam billowing past the windows like dragon breath. I sat comfortably in a private compartment, Harry to my right and Draco to my left — the centerpieces of my first great conquest in this new world.
With a flick of my wand — my disguised staff — I silently wove a delicate enchantment:
Notice-Me-Not.
No red-headed interruption.No meddling bushy-haired girl.No authority figure stepping in.
We were sealed in a bubble of influence where every word belonged to me.
Draco lounged in his seat, arrogant confidence radiating from him like a peacock with pedigree. But arrogance without refinement was a liability.
So I sharpened him.
"You understand, Draco," I said smoothly, "politics are the true battlefield of the Wizarding World. What is raw power if you don't know how to wield society with it?"
His grey eyes flickered with interest.
"My father always said that," he replied, "but he focuses so much on… blood."
"Blood gives reputation," I countered. "But knowledge gives control. Power respects power — regardless of birth."
A slight spell of persuasive pressure — like silk threaded through his mind — gently loosened the grip of bigotry.I needed a polished noble, not a childish supremacist.
Draco Malfoy would become more than a follower.He would become a political commander under my banner.
Then I turned my attention to Harry.
Famous. Gifted.But raised a peasant — chained by mediocrity and humility.
Unacceptable.
"Harry," I said, voice lowering just a bit, "do you truly want others deciding your life for you?"
His brows furrowed — a spark of ambition flaring.
"You've been told who you are all your life," I continued. "But that scar isn't a chain — it's an opportunity. Hogwarts will try to label you. You must choose your own destiny."
He swallowed. "You think I can?"
"Oh, I know you can. But you must pursue power and knowledge — never settle for less. Not when the world already fears your potential."
His hand unconsciously touched his scar — and the Horcrux inside responded.The tiniest ember of Slytherin instinct awakened.
Good.
Soon, the Sorting Hat would examine them.Draco was already destined for Slytherin.Harry teetered on the edge — and I was applying just the right weight.
"Stick with me," I told them both calmly."We will rise together. No matter what threatens us."
Two boys nodded.
Two futures bound.
They did not notice the subtle shadow stretching behind my words — a promise not of friendship, but of empire.
I leaned back in my seat, satisfied.
The Hogwarts Express was not just a train.
It was the first step of my conquest.
The birth of a faction.
The rise of Auron Soran —the Dark Lord who would not stop at Britain…
but the world.